Ayurvedic Mung Dal Basmati Rice Khichadi

I recently bought a book on Ayurvedic cooking to eat as clean as possible. The book, explains how the different food items and preparations are suited for each body type. So I decided to try this recipe, but I have to say that I took some liberty to add salt to taste and reduced the number of cardamom pods it recommended. Here is the link to the book on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1883725054/ref=oh_details_o00_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I like this because it is a one pot dish that cooks in approximately half an hour. It is versatile, in the sense that you can add whatever combination of veggies/ greens you wish. I had made a variation of this with collard greens and broccoli once. Just keep the carbs and fat contained and you should be fine.

Ingredients:
1 cup mung dal uncooked
1/2 cup basmati rice uncooked
4 Cinnamon sticks
1 tsp cloves
4 pods Cardamom
Salt to taste approximately 2 tsps
2/3 cup Mixed vegetables (frozen)
3 cups Cauliflower florets (fresh or frozen)
1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)
1 tsp ghee

Method:
1. In a pan, dry roast mung dal and basmati rice until the mung dal starts giving out aroma

2. Add 3 cups of water to the roasted rice + dal and cook until they are halfway done.

3. Add frozen mixed vegetables, spices and salt and cook until vegetables are halfway done.

4. Now add cauliflower and cook until all ingredients are properly done.
5. Add water as necessary to get a thick porridge like consistency. I typically add approximately 4 cups of water overall.

 5. Once done, add ghee and turmeric for fragrant, piping hot khichadi. Serve hot with pickle or chutney or yogurt or eat as is.

Serving size: 1 cup cooked
Number of servings: 8
Nutrition per serving:
Calories: 146
Carbs: 15 gm
Fat 1 gm
Protein: 8 gm
Fiber: 6 gm

Variation on the Chaat-like Salad - with Mung Bean Sprouts

Continuing my experiments with quick fixes for an afternoon snack at work (Translation: I had left over lettuce and pico from yesterday sitting in my office fridge)... Today, I decided to swap out Greek yogurt for good old sprouted mung beans. Local Indian stores now seem to carry sprouts in easy to use packs. You can make your own mung bean sprouts by soaking dry beans with skin overnight in sufficient water, draining off the water and keeping them covered for a few hours. You should see little baby sprouts shooting off the bean. Keep them long enough to grow but not too long, otherwise, they will start fermenting and then its just plain gross...I got a pack of sprouted mung beans from the local Indian store recently (picture below) and stuck it in my lunch bag for today to munch on. Although I can munch on mung bean sprouts by themselves (yes, without even adding salt or any other condiment - that's how much I love them), I had to salvage the salad ingredients in the fridge. While sprouts aren't as protein dense as Greek yogurt, they do provide a more 'chaat' - like feel to the salad while still being lower calorie.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup lettuce of your choice - chopped
1/4 cup store bought pico de gallo
1/4 cup sprouted mung beans
1 tsp Pickle masala (dry powder)
2 tbsp Haldiram fine sev

Method:

Take the mung bean sprouts and stick them in the micro wave in a covered dish for about a minute and a half to soften and cook lightly. Once they are soft, arrange all of the above ingredients in the same order and enjoy!

Nutritional Information:
Serving size = 1
Calories 98
Protein 4 gms
Carbs 15 gms
Fat 2 gm

'Chaat' like Salad with Greek yogurt

In my quest to glamorize plain non fat Greek yogurt, I have been trying several things to make it more palatable and 'exciting'. If you like the  texture and flavor of plain Greek yogurt, good for you. If not, this dish maybe worth a try. It's super simple to assemble, can be carried to work or anywhere for a quick 'snack'.

Ingredients:
1 cup lettuce of your choice - chopped
1/2 cup store bought pico de gallo
1 Fage non-fat plain Greek yogurt 100 calorie pack
1 tsp Pickle masala (dry powder)
1 tbsp Haldiram fine sev

Method:
Arrange all of the items in the above order and enjoy!

I recently bought this item from the local Indian store. It has all the dry ingredients for a pickle, ground into a coarse powder. I have been using this to give my soups, salads and broth some flavor and spice.

 Nutritional Information:
Serving size = 1
Calories 145
Protein 20 gms
Carbs 14 gms
Fat 1 gm